“You can make them as unique and personal to you and your story”
BY INDIGO SAPPHIRE MOON, IMAGE BY PIXABAY
As the needle began inking onto my upper arm, I knew I’d made the right decision. However, I didn’t know how my tattoos would come to inform my queer expression. I’d seen other queer folk with a myriad of vibrant tattoo designs but couldn’t fully appreciate the meaning behind them until I secured one for myself. The first tattoo I got was an enlightenment symbol. This represented my evolving spirituality, and my desire to develop a conscious and intentional mindset, one that didn’t conform to conventional ways of thinking.
My second tattoo was a symbol from one of my favourite queer TV shows, Wynonna Earp, on my lower left arm. It has a triangle in the centre representing Purgatory, the town in which the series is set, then a sword which the main character, Wynonna, procures after an epic victory topped with angel wings which represent Waverly Earp, Wynonna’s sister who also happens to be half angel. In the TV series, it’s named the Angel’s Shield. For me, this tattoo serves as a reminder of queer love, loyalty, protection and how queer fandoms can defy the odds.
The third tattoo I had inked, on my lower right arm was a stanza from one of my favourite Emily Dickinson poems Hope Is The Thing With Feathers. Emily Dickinson was thought to have been queer and I believe this is why I’m enamoured by her poetry. This poem, in particular, for me symbolises hope, why striving for hope is valuable especially when you’re queer and how nature can be at the heart of this.
Each of these tattoos empower my queer identity in different ways. This is why I believe other queer folk have tattoos. Each one tells a story and informs our identity. They also enhance personalised styles and influence our queer expression. The butch lesbian aesthetic is one such example. Many of us might find it difficult to express our sexuality or identity in other ways but tattoos are an art form, therefore, it can be easier for us to express these parts of ourselves without explicitly communicating to others how we identify.
There’s a rich artistry to tattoos and I think queer folk are attracted to them because they can be anything. You can make them as unique and personal to you and your story. To those who don’t know the meaning behind each one, they may simply appreciate the artistic qualities but there’s another layer. They symbolise the unparalleled journeys of queer folk. The traumas, the joys, the loves, the grief, they’re all there on the skin of those who wish to embrace their queer identity, to express themselves with imagination and ink.
I have every intention to get more tattoos. My queer journey is lifelong and I want each tattoo to symbolise my queer story in the most unique and beautiful way possible. Tattoos don’t define a queer person but we certainly become a canvas for tattoos to help us paint our own path.
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